Unbroken
by Shi-de-Bihu
Summary: It had been naive of Zuko to believe he would change so easily. He did not need to find the right path. He had long found it. It was him who needed to open his eyes to the reality that lay in front of him. Oneshot, Ozai's pov


As the summary says this oneshot is Ozai-centered. It's about his first weeks in prison and how they have changed him - or not changed him.

Reviews are greatly appreciated.

**Disclaimer**: I don't own Avatar: the Last Airbender or any of the characters

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_**Unbroken**_

It was almost pure irony, former firelord Ozai thought as he sat in the dark corner of his cell deep beneath the surface. How many people had he thrown in here during his reign? Yet he had barely been to this place. He had never cared what happened to those he sentenced, and he still did not care. His power was broken, but not his mind.

Weeks had passed since the day of Sozin's comet, and the thought of the experienced humiliation by the hands of the avatar still made his blood boil. He might not be able to fire-bend anymore, however there was no power in the universe that could take away the heat inside of him and rip out his very soul. The well-controlled heat was part of his character like his skin was part of his body. It made him Ozai. Firelord Ozai. Phoenix king Ozai.

He sat on the thin mattress of his cell, his features blank of all emotions, his gaze, which to a simple observer was seemingly staring at the bars, was in truth focussing on the nothingness in front of him, all his thoughts turned inwards.

To everyone he would have been the perfect image of a dirty, humble and defeated prisoner regretting and repenting his actions. Yes, he had been defeated, but not broken. In fact, his spirit was far from broken.

Oftentimes he thought of the happenings on that fateful day he had lost everything and relived them time after time. If one thing about him had changed during his forced stay in prison, it was that he had come to acknowledge his defeat. The avatar had been stronger than him, there was no denying it. After all he was not a fool.

Yet only he could see that this man, no, this child was not the saviour of the world. Certainly not of his nation. He was nothing but a cruel, clueless boy who bathed in the glory of his victory and spread his stupid words of love and peace. In truth he was weak and unworldly as all airbenders in their seclusion had always been. The best proof of this was Ozai himself, the first victim of his mercy.

He had been the reigning firelord, supreme ruler over the fire nation and finally the earth kingdom as well. He was a warrior through and through. In his line of work and regarding his family's history, it was always possible to meet one's end before one's natural time to do so had come. Only the strongest could live their life to the fullest as Sozin had. Those who showed shameful weakness or were not prepared for anything, like his father, died at the hands of their usurpers.

On the day of the comet his moment of truth had come. Either he would emerge from the fight as victor, or he would die as warrior's death in battle. The only acceptable punishment for failure, but honourable nevertheless. He had been prepared for both possibilities, until the avatar's stupid emotions led to his absolute disgrace. And exceeding this crime the boy even thought he had done good.

Ozai clenched his fists in fury at the memory, breathed deeply and relaxed again. Losing one's temper did not suit a warrior, and he was one after all, no matter where he found himself. A thing neither the avatar nor his useless son had been able to understand.

They, along with so many others, regarded him as emotionless, cruel and evil.

Emotionless? Yes, because only if a warrior strapped himself of all sentiments the mind was free from interferences. Emotions got in the way of rational thinking and thereby of doing what was right. A leader could not show weaknesses and if they had ever looked closely, they all would have seen that stupid attachments were the root and source of so many fights. Fights that above all regularly got out of control. Not to allow oneself to feel meant to keep control in every possible situation. Especially in his position this meant everything. The fire nation was a people of warriors, and the firelord was supposed to be their example and idol. To step up to his position he had had to be the perfect warrior, and as it had demanded to let go of all emotion he had gladly done so.

Cruel? Indeed, he had done a lot of cruel things himself and he had ordered even more of them to be executed by the hands of his subordinates. But he had never been cruel without a reason to. Cruelty was there to enforce the law when necessary, which meant it served to make people do what was right. Apart from that he had used it to teach others, including his son, lessons. Lessons that were required to shape people the proper way. There was nothing wrong with using brute force in order to protect his nation or show others the path to become a true, strong man. Those who did not understand these lessons were lost cases, and brought their doom upon themselves.

Evil? That was a funny word. A meaningless word. Of course the antagonist was easily and quickly described as evil, but just because someone who did not like the way he ruled his nation had titled him that way, it did not prove this person had been right. He could have called the avatar evil because he had opposed him. From his point of view this would have been alright and inarguable. Or the earth king for all he knew, or his worthless relatives that had turned against him. However he did not waste his time on such pointless things like this. He did not mind being portrayed as an evil tyrant, after all it ensured he was feared and thus he earned the respect he deserved. In reality good and evil were unconfirmed terms, thrown around thoughtlessly way too much anyways.

"It set me on the right path. Maybe it can do the same for you."

That was what Zuko truly believed. The boy had always had a weak character, prone to failing and completely unsuited to be a warrior, let alone a leader. Yet Ozai's peace-loving brother sure had done his best to make his speeches even more ridiculously corny. Had he found himself in any other position he would have laughed at this pitiful declaration and the determination in Zuko's face. But in comparison to his son he knew what respect was. Even if he could never respect Zuko for who he was himself, he had been visiting him as the firelord, and he knew how to speak to what he had represented in that moment.

Consequently he had answered his question truthfully. Ursa had left to seek refuge in the earth kingdom, more he did not know. She had also been a peace-loving person, but he had recognized her for she had had firm principles. As much as she had taught compassion and cherished emotions, she had demonstrated that she had the ruthlessness to pursue her goals, no matter what the price. She had even been cold-blooded enough to step over corpses to achieve what she wanted. Therefore his disgust equalled his esteem for her. Zuko plainly lacked all of those valuable traits. He was nothing.

Slowly and gracefully Ozai got to his feet and straightened his stiff back. With total tranquillity he looked through the iron bars and wondered what was happening up above him under the new firelord's rule. A predatory smile appeared slightly on his lips, barely bending the corners of his mouth, his amber eyes calm in patient anticipation.

"An era of love and peace." His son would sooner or later notice that, even with the avatar on his side, this was an impossible thing to accomplish. Men were not made to live peacefully side by side, they were a race of animals. They could be tamed, but a part of them remained forever unpredictable.

Peace could not be attained as long as there was ambition, greed, jealousy and, worst of all, love. Love could make monsters out of kind people if it came to protect others. And if there is one virtue, there's always its opposite lurking beneath the surface. Where there's love, there's also hate. They all would see that the realm they dreamt of could never exist. Only idiots could dream of something like that. Ones who had never ruled, never known all he knew about people. Experience would open their eyes eventually – open their eyes to the greatness the fire nation truly had represented for a hundred years.

And until this happened he would patiently be waiting for the day great firelord Zuko would come crawling to him, begging for his advice this time. Until then he would remain defeated, yet unbroken.


End file.
